Family Faith

Today we started in earnest into chapter 8. It is a big chapter, with plenty of material requiring a fair bit of discussion. We tackled a few this week, but we have plenty more to go. Dealing with the “unsaid” it was clear that many felt that you have to be careful before sharing things with people. The trust that is required is hugely important. But if you feel you can’t share with someone, where does that tell you that relationship is? Well, maybe it is just a fledgling relationship and so hasn’t built that trust yet. You don’t just start a relationship and then share your deepest, most unsaid items. The other thing we talked about is the fact that you shouldn’t just use a “friend” as a dumping ground for your problems and then walk away. So these are all things that play into building relationships that are built on love, not self.

Here are the slides from this week.

I also shared a video on Sunday from the Skit Guys. For me, it was a completely different way of looking at this week leading up to Easter including the different people who would have been involved in the story.

This week we concluded chapter 7, Violence of the bees.  Discussing this section took us to situations where family, relationships, and the “unsaid” were all brought up.  We talked about the section on page 184 where there is a description of God running toward you (images of the prodigal son again for me).  I asked if anyone thought they might be running in the opposite direction?

To conclude the chapter I gave a couple of “homework” assignments.  Here they are:

Write a description of your best and favorite relationship. 
As you write it out concentrate on listing out the aspects 
that you find to be invaluable.

Now compare this beautiful picture of “relationship” with your 
relationship with Christ. How are they similar? 
How are they different?

Here are this week’s slides.

Next week, we will begin Chapter 8: Transcend – grasp love

But, to begin to prepare for Easter – I also showed this video:  FOLLOW

Well today we got further into Chapter 7.  I wanted to thank Dick for the idea and for participating in our dramatic reading of part of the chapter.  It definitely gave me a different view of that “conversation” between Jesus and the man on the shoreline.  I really enjoyed the discussions today.  Great insights and viewpoints on many items.

This is an interestingly deep and insightful chapter.  I think it has many facets that the writer may not even have intended.  I love that!   We’ll finish up the chapter next week with a few thoughtful slides and then dive right into chapter 8.  Thanks again for some great dialogue today.

I wanted to again congratulate Conley Taylor and the family.  Being selected to participate in the NABC All-Star game is a great honor.  I did find out from Mel that Conley played well, had 11 points and 5 assists.  Great game given the compilation of talent at such an event.

And just so you know, Melanie is still in first place even after most of today’s games!

Here are the slides from this week.

This week we completed the chapter, whale stars.  A very deep and interesting chapter.  Thanks for all your input.  We talked about the quote, “We feel honestly the pull of many obligations…” and discussed this as our daily experience.  We talked about the vastly richer and deeper life that can be had through a relationship.  And how it takes work.  It’s messy.  It’s challenging.  It’s frustrating.  But it is the essence of being vulnerable and involved in and with God.

We then entered into the next chapter – ‘The Violence of Bees.’  The first description in this chapter led to some interesting visions for me.  The picture of Jesus on the shoreline and God being, “somewhere far out there” is one that made me do some thinking.  Are we comfortable with where we are on the shore?  Does going into the ocean and searching for God scare us?

One of my favorite lines of this week, is that “Life abounds with the watermarks of relationships.”  When I think about this one, I can look back and see the “watermarks” of many of the people that helped shape who I am.  Some of course are deeper and more significant, but all of them leave a watermark.  Some positive, some not so positive, but they all contribute to who I am.

So we ended with this from the chapter; “So we do our best to constrain God to our limited space and time, giving him cues for when he can appear in life, always making sure he’s in his box.”  What a cutting and unflattering way to describe how we interact with God.  I think it clearly points to our being much more comfortable on the shoreline, gazing out into the ocean of God when it meets our timeline, convenience, desire.

This week, see if you can determine your activities on the shore and/or in the ocean.  See you next week… please finish reading the chapter!  :-)  Here are this week’s slides.

I didn’t get a post in last week, my apologies.  And because of that, I didn’t get a chance to thank Dick for picking up the class for me.  I really appreciate it.  Visiting my parents, especially my Dad for his birthday is something very special for my brother and I.  We play cards, share stories, play golf and have a great time.  It’s always something that helps my brother and I, but I also think that it is wonderful for my parents.

So we are almost finished with whale stars.  A very interesting chapter with a lot of content.  Some things I absolutely agree with and a number of things that I may not fully buy into.  But always good for discussion and conversation.

We will finish up a slide or two next week for whale stars, but will dive into chapter 7 pretty quickly.  Another interesting chapter with some challenging points.  Bring your relationship thoughts with you for that one.  So I look forward to next week.  Have a great week, plan for encounters with God and look for those that aren’t planned.

Here are the this week’s slides.

Okay, so wanted to do a quick poll as well:

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